Javagal Srinath's contribution to Indian cricket may not have been spectacular, but it was among the more substantial. In this interview he talks about his decision to quit when he was bowling smarter, if not faster than ever. Why did you retire from Tests so suddenly?
It was a question of body and mind. It had been on my mind for a while and I got enough signals from my body during the series in the West Indies. I really wasn't prepared for that, and my body didn't respond during the last two Tests. Like the team, I started the series well, but things fell away after the first two Tests. Also, I don't think I was bowling upto to my expectations on a consistent basis. I was looking for a green patch or two to help me and to be honest, at this point in time, I don't see myself in the Test squad on Indian wickets.

Why did you want to carry on playing one-day cricket then?
A lot of wrong signals have been given by certain sections of our board. I love one-day cricket with its entertainment value and high intensity, but the real game is Test cricket. Having played so much cricket – and bowled so many overs in both forms of the game – it wasn't possible to keep going without a break. I did ask the selectors to rest me for one or two one-day tournaments just so I could be fit for the Tests. The bowlers who are playing now will face the same problem soon enough, with so many matches being played.

I still maintain that Test matches are special. You win one, you'll cherish it for life; and if you lose, it might haunt you forever. In the one-day game, you can win today, lose tomorrow and then win again the day after. It's not right for people to say that I pick and choose my matches. I took the break because my body needed it but when I'm not playing, I really miss the game. I don't think it's right to perform well below your best – but just about good enough – merely to keep your place in the side. In such a case, it's better to take a break and come back refreshed.

Disappointed to miss out on the one-day squad?
Not really. I expected these things to happen. A few people in the system haven't understood me. After all, how many have bowled for the country as much as I have? Only someone who has done that can understand the plight of fast bowlers in this country.

You once said that you were a mediocre performer compared to someone like Glenn McGrath…
I don't like to make excuses for myself. For example, I could say that I have played half my cricket on docile tracks that aren't conducive to fast bowling. Even if it's a good grassy pitch overseas, you still have to bowl well to take wickets. At the end of the day, it comes down to your own performances and how they've served the team, and in that aspect I don't think I'm in the same bracket as Waqar [Younis], Wasim [Akram], McGrath and a few others.

Your strike-rates and averages are much better at home…
I think one of the biggest problems when we go abroad has been the lack of a third seamer. The situation is getting better now. But over the last 10 years, how often have we had an effective third seamer? Why didn't the third seamer deliver most of the time? We invariably got breakthroughs in most of the games but the third seamer failed because he had no experience at that level. Why is that? Because he can never find a place in the team when we play at home. I think the change has to come at the grassroots. We need to see pitches that allow you to play three seamers.

Of late, you had taken a different approach to your bowling, pitching the ball up a lot more…
You have to adapt as you go along and this was one of the changes that paid dividends. When you're a young fast bowler, there's always a tendency to pitch it a little short. It depends on the conditions too, to an extent. But sooner or later, a bowler realises that pitching the ball up is the key. Maybe if I had pitched the ball up more in the early stages of my career I might have got more wickets. That is certainly one of my regrets.

Any regrets when it comes to your batting?
It was disappointing, but with the amount of bowling I did, it was hard to concentrate with the bat. The injuries and the fractures didn't help.

Talking of injuries, how much did that shoulder injury in 1997 set you back?
Tremendously. That was a period when I was peaking and had I maintained that form for three or four years, I might have been a very different bowler. That pushed me back to square one and it took eight to nine months just to get back.

What does the future hold for Javagal Srinath?
I believe I just need to work hard and keep myself fit for the World Cup. I'll make myself available and it's up to the selectors to pick me. It's only right that they groom players for the future but I'll keep working and see how it goes. I really want to play the World Cup though.

For the full interview, get a copy of the July 2002 issue of Wisden Asia Cricket

Dileep Premachandran is assistant editor of Wisden Asia Cricket and Wisden.com India Subscribe to Wisden Asia Cricket
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